Self-locking pin.



G. 0. BROWN.

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APPLICATION FILED DEC. 5,1914. I 1,139,337. Patented May11,1915.

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enonen 0. BROWN, or ru'nranaroprs, INDIANA.

SELF-LOCKINQ- PIN.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed December 5, 19 14. Serial No. 875,683.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE 0. BROWN, citizen of the United States, residing at Indianapolis, in the county of Marion and State of Indiana, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Self-Locking Pins; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such aswill enable -others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to pins as used in place of bolts 'for making fastenings which may be removed when desired. Heretofore, it has been customary to secure such pins in position by means of spring cotters inserted a through transverse perforations in the respective pins. Such cotters when inserted require their free ends to be properly sprung apart to prevent their working loose, and

commonly are so small (because of the neoessarily restricted size of the perforation in thepin) that they are difficult to handle,

- particularly when cold weather benumbs the fingers of those using the same. Moreover, the cotters are easily lost and sometimes separated from the pins during shipment,

thereby delaying important work, or even inducing the men to insert the pins without the cotters. To'guard against such occurrences, it has been necessary heretofore to inspect every such pin when used on railroad workto make sure not only that the cotter has been properly inserted, but also that the free ends of the cotterrhave'been suitably spread.

The general object of my invention is to provide a pin or bolt substitute with an Y anchoring member secured to the same and so disposed that it-will not interfere with the ready insertion of the pin, but will securely lock the latter in position when once inserted. This object may be accomplished with substantial equal facility in a number of different ways, two of which are shown -in the accompanying drawings, in.which Figure 1 is an elevation of a pin embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the pin, partly in section, showing the same while being inserted through alined perforations in-two plates which are tobefastened together by the pin. Fig. 3 is a Fig. 4 showing another arrangement of the Patented May 11, 1915.

interlocking formation on the spring. Fig.

7 1s a view similar to Fig. 6, but with the pin and spring interlocked.

In the embodiments of the drawings, my invention consists of a substantially cylindrical pin' 1 .equipped at one end with a suitable head 2 and having near its other end a narrow transverse erforation or channel connecting a pair of indentations 3 disposed upon opposite sides of the pin and sloping toward the head end of the pin so as to afford a maximum of depth at the juncture of the said indentations with the channel. The said channel and indentations form connecting chambers adapted entirely to house an anchoring member consisting of a pair of arms 4 connected by an intermediate portion 5, the said anchoring member being preferably made of a strip of spring metal having a thickness somewhat smaller than the width of the channel connecting the said indentations. The anchoring mem-, ber is so formed before tempering thesame that the arms 4 will tend to spread out (as shown in Fig. 3) so as to spread their'tips to a distance considerably farther apart than the diameter of the pin, although the resiliency of the metal will permit the said arms to be pressed toward'each other (as shown in Fig. 2) so as to enable the same to be housed by the said indentations when the quently, the user merely needs to slip the headless end of the pin into the perforation and to drive it through with a blow of the hammer, after which the resiliency of the anchoring member will cause the latter to spread as shown in Fig. 3, thereby compressing the free ends of the latter in such a way that they will prevent a subsequent withdrawal of the pin.

To prevent a possible detachment of the anchoring member from the pin, which detachment might easily result either in the loss of the anchoring members when the pins are being shipped, or in a spoiling of the security of the fastening, I preferably interlock the anchoring member with the pin after one arm of the former has been inserted through the said channel to place the parts in their normal relative positions. For this purpose, I preferably equip the intermediate portion 5 of the anchoring member-with a suitable formation so positioned as to be axial of the pin when the anchoring member is in its normal position, and adapted to be interlocked with an adjacent portion of the pin by a suitable distortion of the latter. This interlocking may be accomplished in a number of different ways, two of which are shown in the drawings. In the embodiment of Fig. 4:, the anchoring member is equipped on its lower surface with an indentat on 6 presenting a recess toward the small end of the pin, which end is equipped with a bore 7 leaving only a thin Wall 8 between the tip ofsaid bore and the channel housing the recessed portion of the anchoring member. Then after the anchoring member has been slipped into its assembling position, the said portion 8 is forced upward by means of a punch so as to form a prong 9 entering the said recess 6 (as shown in Fig. 5), thereby interlocking the pin with the anchoring member so that the two cannot be accidentally detached from each other.

Instead of indenting the anchoring member and thereby possibly weakening the same, the said member may have a nub 10 formed upon the same projecting in a downward direction, while the relatively thin portion 8 near the small end of the pin may be equipped with a bore 11 adapted to house the said nub 10. Then upon forcing the said portion 8 upwardly, the same may be caused to'snugly house the nub 10, as shown in Fig. 7. Either of these methods of securing the anchoring member to the pin can,

readily be applied to pins as commonly made of steel, wrought iron or malleable iron, and it will be evident that such an interlocking, (which adds but little to .the cost of manufacture) will guard against the loss of the anchoring member in transit and against its accidental detachment from the pin when the latter is in use. I am there fore able to produce at small cost a pin which can be inserted with a simple blow of a hammer, which can easily be manipulated even in the coldest weather, and which will automatically lock itself in position when inserted, thereby forming a simple and safe substitute for the customary pin and cotter and for bolts when used where a compressing action upon the parts fastened together by the latter is not required.

I claim as my. invention:

1. A device of the class described, comprising a pin equipped near one end with a pair of oppositely disposed recesses connected by a channel extending transversely of said pin, and ananchoring member of resilient material having a portion disposed within said channel and presenting end portions normally projecting beyond the outer surface of the pin, the resiliency of said anchoring member permitting the said end portionsto be housed respectively by said recesses.

2. A device of the class described, comprising a pin equipped near one end with a pair of oppositely disposed recesses .connected by a channel extending transversely of said pin; an anchoring member of resilient material having a portion disposed within said channel and presenting end por tions normally projecting beyond the outer surface of the pin, the resiliency of said anchoring member permitting the said end portions to be housed respectively by said recesses; and means associated with said pin and anchoring member for relatively interlocking the same.

3. A. device of prising a pin equipped near one end with a pair of oppositely disposed recesses connected by a channel extending transversely of said pin, and ananchoring member of resilient material having its central portion disposed within said channel and presenting end portions normally projecting beyond the nected by a channel extending transversely of said pin, and an anchoring member of resilient material having its central port1on disposed in said channel and having end portions normally projecting beyond the outer surface of the pin, the resiliency of said anchoring member perm1tting the said end portions to be housedrespectwely by the class described, comsaid recesses, the said anchoring member In testimony whereof I have si ed my presenting a formation disposed within said name in presence of two subscribing wit channel, a portion. of the pin adjacent to the nesses.

said formation being of reduced thickness GEQRGE G. BROWN. 5 and being distorted out of its original posi- Witnesses:

tion to afiordan interlocking with the said W; P. DoRNER,

formation upon the anchoring member. W. J. MOFFATI. 

